SD Woman Holds Record For Largest Bear Collection

HILL CITY, S.D. (AP) — As a child growing up in foster care in Minnesota, Jackie Miley never had that most quintessential childhood toy: the teddy bear.

But today, the 63-year-old resident of Hill City, S.D., is making up for that — and then some. With 7,790 teddy bears, Miley holds the Guinness World Record for largest teddy bear collection.

Her collection is housed in a small home along Main Street in Hill City, a town of fewer than 800 people in western South Dakota’s Black Hills. Teddy Bear Town is filled to the brim with every type and size of teddy bear imaginable — Beanie Baby teddy bears, the talking Teddy Ruxpin bear and porcelain teddy bears. Visitors are invited to admire the collection and buy souvenirs at a teddy bear-themed gift shop.